


Clipped

by Justa14writer



Category: Batman - All Media Types
Genre: Bat Family, Flying, Musing, Reflection of the Batfamily, Resurrected Jason Todd, Wings, metaphorical wings
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-16
Updated: 2016-01-16
Packaged: 2018-05-14 07:55:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5735728
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Justa14writer/pseuds/Justa14writer
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Cassandra thinks of her 'family', and their love of 'flying'. But someones wings were clipped. </p><p>--<br/>Slight AU maybe? Cassandra and Jason grew up together- no other siblings except eachother because Dick moved out before them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Clipped

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by a Batfamily fan art pic of the Robins with wings.

Cassandra Cain looks over Gotham Park from a park bench with a critical eye.

But her mind his other places tonight.

She's thinking of flying.

No, not like the super's flying or the 'real' flying.

But the kind of flying that the Bats have done since Batman first burst onto the scene years ago.

But Bruce doesn't *fly*.

He...glides. 

He jumps from rooftop to rooftop letting the wind guide him to the next fight.

He's told her before that he...*enjoys* it. But its not FUN. 

Its just...a way of getting around.

He prefers the Batmobile or the Batplane, but some nights...some nights you just need to freefall from a skyscraper on a cold Gotham night.

Cassandra is like Bruce, she *glides*. 

Its nice to just- fall from building to building.

But Dick- Dick was always different. 

He *flew*.

From the *flying* Graysons to being Robin he always-*always*- flew on metaphorical wings.

Even now that he's Nightwing and doesn't laugh loudly every time he free falls, you can still hear a random giggle outburst when he catches himself from hitting the ground and the last possible moment. 

The *need* to fly never left with age.

Barbara...she's both sometimes.

When she's by herself in 'business' mode she simply glides from place to place.

But when Dick is with her, they *fly* over Gotham.

And Jason?

Jason used to love to fly.

He told me once that when he was first starting out, it scared him.

His whole life had been in alley ways on the ground. And to suddenly be on top of it all?

Crazy.

But he learned to love it.

He used to laugh unconcerned and full of joy at *flying* over the homes of Gotham. 

He used to show Cassandra how to fly.

She didn't like the feeling of exposure, but she would be patient and let Jason take her hand and show her how to let the wind lift you up and break you down all at once.

But then the joker happened.

And Jason, Jason was never the same. 

His *wings* had been *clipped*. 

He didn't jump from rooftop to rooftop anymore.

He slunk from alley to alley as Red Hood. 

He no longer flew.

The others didn't see it, didn't recognize the difference.

But Cassandra *knew*.

She was aware of the silence over the rooftops where there used to be laughter.

She was aware of the suspicious lack of scratch marks on railings where his birdarangs would catch him before he fell.

She *knew*.

Knew that the Joker took away his wings, his *wings*.

The laughter the joy the freedom that they had given the ten year old street orphan. 

They were gone.

Jason didn't dwell on it, didn't dwell on the past long enough to notice his wings absence.

But Cassandra was painfully aware of the way he ran through alley ways with a scowl instead of *flying* with a smile.

He was grounded while the new Robin laughed, flying the same way Jason had.

He looked on like it didn't bother him.

Because it didn't, not *yet*. 

He was still to angry at the world to care about things like metaphorical wings.

But Cassandra noticed.

She noticed how Bruce glided, and Dick flew, and Barbara did both, and how Tim was learning to use his 'wings'.

And Jason was grounded.

He couldn't fly anymore.

Didn't have it in him.

Cassandra tried to glide with Tim.

(Because she'll do a lot for her brother Jason, but being mean to Tim is not one of them) 

But it didn't feel right.

Didn't feel right to feel the wind on her face when she knew, that Jason was down there.

Down on the ground all by himself. 

And Cassandra couldn't do it.

She couldn't leave him there.

So she stopped.

She stoped gliding. Stopped trying to fly.

She stayed on the ground, and looked up.

She simply *looked up*.

And she was the world how a clipped Robin saw.

She saw her family fly from her spot on the ground.

They didn't understand.

They didn't understand why she was suddenly stopped coming on rooftops.

But she didn't tell them.

Didn't tell them how it felt to look up, look up and not follow.

But she waited.

Waited for Jason to hit his breaking point.

For him to fall to the ground when he finally realized- *that he couldn't fly*.

And when he did, she would be here.

Here on the ground within reach of a crippled bird.

No, they didn't understand. 

Not even Jason understood the lengths a she would go through for family. 

But some day.

Some day he -they all- would understand that she was down here for the grounded bird.


End file.
